Rita Panahi: Tourists need to hear truth before hysteria makes bushfire catastrophe worse
Contrary to fake news, the entire continent of Australia isn’t on fire. And as tourists axe their trips to untouched areas, the hysteria needs to calm down so the world will know we’re still open for business, writes Rita Panahi.
Rita Panahi
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Hysteria has consequences. The bushfire season has been devastating enough without media and social media hyperbole, both locally and internationally, causing further financial damage to fire-affected communities and the tourism industry.
A number of wildly misleading maps of the Australian fires were disseminated over several weeks by mainstream media outlets across the globe, giving the impression that half the country was on fire.
Not surprisingly, the fake news has scared off many potential international tourists who would rather not spend their vacation in what they’ve been told is a scorched disaster zone.
One map promoted by the ABC network in the US showed all of Victoria on fire as well as almost the entire coastline of the country. The map also had a large band of fire stretching from West Australia, across the desert, all the way to the Gulf of Carpentaria.
Another fire map that quickly went viral, and was even shared by pop star Rihanna to her more than 95 million Twitter followers, was actually a “3D visualisation”.
Many thought the image was a NASA photograph but it was “created as an art piece” by a Brisbane photographer.
Other inaccurate maps that were shared, often with the #climateemergency hashtag showed almost all of West Australia, Queensland and the Northern Territory in flames and images from previous bushfires were circulated as current.
But arguably the fire-map that has caused the most damage is one funded by the West Australian government through its MyFireWatch website.
The site provides valuable information at a local level but when you zoom out to the full map of Australia you get the false impression that the whole continent is on fire.
That map was used by a multitude of publications including Time magazine and many TV networks. It’s little wonder that so many desperately needed holiday makers are cancelling trips and going elsewhere. Bookings from key international markets are down by as much as 30 to 40 per cent, according to Tourism minister Simon Birmingham.
The Australian Tourism Export Council estimates the slump in visitor numbers could cost the economy more than $4 billion.
That’s causing concern at Tourism Australia, with managing director Phillipa Harrison keen to correct misconceptions. “This (bushfire) coverage has led to the incorrect view that all of Australia is on fire … we are seeing areas unaffected by the bushfires having a real downturn in visitors,” she said.
“We aren’t sugar-coating that the bushfires were devastating and tragic, but the problem now is to give would-be visitors to Australia the right information that most of Australia is unaffected by fires … that they can still come and visit and it is safe.”
This month Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced a $76 million tourism recovery package including $25 million for an international campaign to reassure wary tourists that Australia is open for business.
“Australian tourism is facing its biggest challenge in living memory,” Morrison said. “This is make or break for many businesses and tourist hot spots and not just in those areas directly hit by the bushfires.”
Compounding the tourism industry’s woes is the coronavirus which has seen China suspend all tour group trips in an effort to contain the spread of the virus. That will put a dent in the number of international visitors in the coming weeks and possibly months. China is Australia’s biggest tourism market with about 1.4 million visitors each year, 25 per cent of whom visit in tour groups.
There’s not much that tourism operators can do about coronavirus but they are fighting back against the fake fire news and encouraging both local and overseas travellers to spend their hard earned in Australia.
Among the areas hard hit by a tourism reverse is Uluru, not just because of misleading fire maps but also due to the permanent closure of the rock to climbers. Tourism operators in the area are now offering heavy discounts of about 40 per cent to entice tourists. Australia is among the most expensive holiday destinations.
We are a long way from Europe and the Americas with prices markedly higher than many other desirable hot spots. The last thing we need to do is give overseas tourists a reason to stay away.
Given one in 13 Australian jobs are reliant on tourism and hospitality, it would make sense for the federal government to boost its investment in the tourism recovery package in light of the impact of the coronavirus.
And, we can all do our bit by choosing local destinations when planning a trip, even if it’s just a weekend in the country.
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Visiting areas recovering from bushfires or close to bushfire zones is critically important in helping communities bounce back from this bushfires.
Even towns hundreds of kilometres away from the nearest bushfire are experiencing massive drops in visitor numbers. One caravan park in Leongatha has seen an 85 to 90 per cent drop in bookings. So, perhaps instead of a week in Bali or that resort in Thailand, book a trip to a corner of Australia you haven’t seen before and do your bit for the struggling tourism trade.
— Rita Panahi is a Herald Sun columnist